In many cases I know the device name (processor, DASD, disk, tape), but not the device number. The device number can be used to search e.g. for the corresponding Preventive Service Planning (PSP) document to get required APAR information for a specific device....

Today you can order z/VSE on tape, DVD or electronically from Shopz. Do you still need z/VSE on tape ? As you know since z/VSE 5.2 you can run an initial installation from a DVD or tape image. I described tape-less installation in one of my blog entries - here...

From time to time it is necessary to upgrade the microcode of your IBM Storage (ECKD/SCSI disk or tape). For ECKD storage I recommend to shutdown the z/VSE system before you upgrade the microcode. For Fibre-Channel-attached SCSI disks concurrent microcode...

The IBM System Storage TS1120, TS1130 and TS1140 tape drives support drive-based data encryption to protect your data. This blog entry is related to the encryption key manger, that is required dependent on the tape device, if you want use drive-based data...

I often get questions about VSE releases and how they support processors or devices. Most of that information is on our status web pages. We even keep the processor and device support actual for very old VSE releases too and what you need to run your system on...

Just recently, Storage magazine/SearchStorage.com published the results of their ninth annual Tape Libraries Quality Awards. The results were derived out of 473 evaluations from 321 users, covering five main quality categories. So I believe there’s...

We've updated the IBM TS4500 Tape Library Guide to include the new TS1150 tape drive . For now you can select the New Draft Version from the current abstract page or go directly to the draft abstract page here ....

There are new APARs / PTFs since my last service news blog entry. As you may know, it could be that I miss one or the other APAR. Therefore I recommend to register for z/VSE components - or visit our service web pages to catch the latest service...

Two weeks ago there was a service withdrawal announcement for some hardware. Especially the service withdrawal of a few tape units may be of interest for you. You can find the affected models in the announcement letter - here .

As promised here is the next new function of z/VSE 5.2: the stacking tape support - available on April 25, 2014. The stacking tape support is based on z/VSE's virtual tape support. Below I will describe virtual tapes that reside on physical...

With z/VSE 4.3 we introduced 4-digit device addresses. That is you can define device addresses up to X'FFFF'. So you are no longer forced to define 3-digit device addresses for z/VSE specific configurations, which simplifies IT environments with...

Today a short blog entry about the latest IBM storage announcements, that may be of interest for z/VSE users. The first announcement is related to a new release of the IBM Virtualization Engine TS7700. It now can be used with 8 Gb FICON adapters. There are...

If you need tape cartridges with more capacity, the IBM TS1140 tape drive may be an option. z/VSE supports this tape drive since mid of last year. To get the TS1140 supported you need to apply APAR DY47436 . DITTO/ESA also needs to be updated with APAR PM62302...

As you may have noticed I like our IBM Redbooks. Today I want to inform you about new IBM Redbooks that do not directly address z/VSE, but are related to z/VSE. A few blog entries ago I mentioned the draft Redbook "Setting up Linux on System z for...

What: Tape and ProtecTIER Virtual Tape Technical Update for IBM i Customers Join us for a Technical update on Tape and ProtecTIER Virtual Tape in the IBM i world. Learn about TS1140 and LTO6 Tape and the latest ProtecTIER announcements. Discover...

What: IBM System Storage TS3310 Tape Library Update & Demo. If you haven’t looked at the IBM System Storage TS3310 Tape Library lately then you’re in for a pleasant surprise as this little library is now all grown up. The TS3310 remains true to...

We had already some discussion in the past about z/VSE's - or I should say VSE's processor (server) and device support. I often get questions from customers and sales reps, if a VSE system (supported and unsupported releases) runs on a specific server...

Today I will describe a few examples that use virtual tape to backup data. You may consider the z/VSE virtual tape support for backup functions, that produce tape output. Backup on virtual tape may be faster and more flexible then real tapes. You don't...

What: Accelerate with IBM: IBM Tape Encryption and TKLM Overview and Update This Accelerate with ATS session will overview IBM's tape encryption solution and describe the TKLM v2.0.1 enhancements. We will also demonstrate the TKLM GUI. There will be time for...

What: Accelerate with ATS: TS7700 Technical Update This class will bring you up to speed on the latest enhancements to the TS7700 Virtualization Engine. There will be time for questions and answers at the end of this very informative 90 minute session. When: ...

With all the announcements we had in June, it is easy for some of the more subtle enhancements to get overlooked. While I was at Orlando for the IBM Edge conference, I was able to blog about some of the key featured announcements. Then, later, when I got...